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The DRDO has rescheduled the test-firing of submarine launched ballistic missile ( SLBM) K-15 to January 31. It was supposed to be test-fired from an underwater platform off the Vishakhapatnam coast on January 20.

"The test was first scheduled on January 16, but was postponed to January 20. Now it has again been rescheduled to January 31 due to delay in arrangements. It is a coordinated exercise of both land and Navy personnel," a source said.

"India can join the league of five nations, Russia, US, France, Britain and China, with the successful launch of the K-15 missile. These countries already possess advanced missiles that can be launched from a submarine," sources said.The indigenously developed K-15 or the B-05 missile are 10 metres in length, one metre in diameter and weighs ten tonnes with a strike range of around 700 km.

This missile uses solid propellant and carries a conventional payload of about 500 kg to one tone and also be fitted with a tactical nuclear warhead. "The missile is ready for the test. But preparation is on for locating the Pontoon (replica of a submarine) inside the sea. The tracking machineries and technical equipment have been shifted from the integrated test range to Vishakhapatnam," the source added.

The K-15 missile has been tested at least six times and is in serial production. The missile was initially test-fired under the name of Sagarika project. While its launching was recorded partial success twice, the rest were claimed as "successful trials" by the DRDO.

The missile, which can be compared with the Tomahawk missile of US, is India's response to Pakistan's Babur missile. The source further said that the Navy has reportedly been insisting for the test of K-15's cruise variant as it is hard to be obstructed and has pinpoint accuracy.

"Cruise missiles are more difficult to detect and hence less vulnerable to anti-missile defence, which can track and destroy ballistic missiles with comparative ease," a defence scientist said. "Besides, the K-15 missile, India has another missile which can also be launched from a submarine. In a joint collaboration with Russia, a submarine-launched version of BrahMos cruise missile has been developed," he added.

Indian Air Force will formally induct its first C-130 J Hercules Transport aircraft on February 5.

The aircraft is likely to arrive in the country by the end of this month and would be formally inducted into the IAF at a ceremony at its home base Hindan air base near here on February 5, IAF officials said here.

The first of the six aircraft procured by India under USD 970 million deal was handed over to IAF in mid-December.

The aircraft is expected to enhance IAF''s special missions capability along with transporting men and material.

India had purchased the aircraft under the US government''s Foreign Military Sales route that includes an offset clause under which the firm will invest 30 per cent of the deal amount back in Indian defence industry.

The aircraft will be based at Hindan in Ghaziabad just outside the capital, where the infrastructure for its deployment has been completed.

The aircraft would also be pressed into service for transporting special forces from the capital to other placesin the country in case need arises.

The US government had offered a unique C-130J configuration modified for special mission roles and these will be the first uniquely configured aircraft in the IAF fleet for its special operations.

The aircraft will be able to perform precision low-levelflying, air drops, and landing in blackout conditions. Special features are included to ensure aircraft survivability in hostile air defence environment.

India is also planning to place orders for six more similar aircraft and likely to send a Letter of Request to the US Government in this regard in near future.

Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman has appreciated the role of police in war against terror, Geo News reported on Thursday.

Talking to media after a ceremony in police lines Islamabad, Air Chief said that 45 F-16 fighter gets are being upgraded in Turkey. He added that new squadrons of F-16 and JF-17 thunder planes would be constituted in March.He informed that PAF have 21 JF-17 thunder jets in final stage while nine are being manufactured.

Earlier, addressing the passing out ceremony as chief guest, Air Chief Marshal stated that sacrifices of police for the country would not go waste, adding that police and armed forces are fighting against the war on terror hand-to-hand.

He was optimistic that terrorism would be eliminated from the country.

The European Eurofighter Typhoon consortium is offering its almost science fiction-evoking helmet to the Indian Air Force (IAF) as part of its bid to win the 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) tender, according to company sources. The helmet can enable a pilot to lock-on target and shoot by voice command, merely after looking at the target.Company sources confirmed to StratPost that the Eurofighter Typhoon Helmet Mounted Symbology System, developed by BAE Systems and released last July, was part of its offering to the IAF. BAE Systems had issued a press release on the helmet earlier this month, calling it something out of Star Wars, in a reference to its seemingly filmy capabilities, where it said the helmet ‘lets the pilot see through the body of the aircraft’. “Using the new helmet system, the pilot can now look at multiple targets, lock-on to them, and then, by voice-command, prioritize them. It’s a lightning-fast system to let the pilot look, lock-on, and fire,” said BAE Systems of the system, which also brings to mind the thought-controlled weapons system onboard the fictional MiG-31 in the Clint Eastwood-starring Firefox.

The helmet has a number of fixed sensors, which move in relation to the sensors on the aircraft as the pilot moves his head, ‘ensuring the aircraft knows exactly where and what he is looking at’. Apparently, the pilot can zero-in on targets even if they’re out of line of sight or nowhere in the range of the aircraft vector.

Pilots of British Royal Air Force (RAF) Eurofighter Typhoons are expected to be become the first users of this helmet sometime this year.

A tactical confrontation drill with real combat backdrop held in Guangzhou Military Area, Surprise drill comes in a time when PLAAF trying to replace J-7 jets, In 2011 there will be major replacement regarding old J-7 jets.

India has no plans as of now to either join the US-led joint strike fighter (JSF) programme or buy the F-35 `Lightning-II' fifth-generation fighter aircraft (FGFA) when it finally becomes operational.

"We cannot have two types of FGFA. We have already launched preliminary work for our FGFA after inking the $295 million preliminary design contract (PDC) with Russia last month,'' said a top defence ministry official on Friday.

This comes in the wake of comments made by a top Pentagon official, undersecretary of defence for acquisition, technology and logistics Ashton Carter, in Washington that the US was open to Indian participation in its JSF project.

Interestingly, the comments came during a function where an aggressive sales pitch was made for India to select either the American F/A-18 `Super Hornet' ( Boeing) or F-16 `Falcon' ( Lockheed Martin) over their European rivals in the ongoing IAF's medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA) contest.

The other 4.5-generation fighters in the hotly-contested race to bag the $10.4 billion MMRCA project, under which 18 jets will be bought off-the-shelf and another 108 will be manufactured in India under transfer of technology, are Eurofighter Typhoon, Swedish Gripen (Saab), French Rafale (Dassault) and Russian MiG-35 (United Aircraft Corporation).

The IAF force matrix for the coming years revolves around the 270 Sukhoi-30MKIs contracted from Russia for around $12 billion, the 126 MMRCA and 120 indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, apart from upgraded MiG-29s and Mirage-2000s.

In the decades ahead, the advanced stealth FGFA to be developed with Russia will be the mainstay of India's combat fleet. "Our FGFA will be cheaper than the F-35. Moreover, the intellectual property rights of the FGFA will equally and jointly vest on both India and Russia, with full access to the source code and the like,'' said another senior official.

With a potent mix of super-manoeuvrability and supersonic cruising ability, the "swing-role'' FGFA will of course not come cheap. The cost of designing, infrastructure build-up, prototype development and flight testing has been pegged at around $11 billion, with India and Russia chipping in with $5.5 billion each.

Over and above this, each of the 250-300 FGFA India hopes to begin inducting from 2020 onwards will cost around $100 million each. In all, India will spend upwards of $35 billion over the next two decades in its biggest-ever defence project till now.

The Indian FGFA will primarily be based on the single-seater Sukhoi T-50, the prototype of which is already flying in Russia, but will include a twin-seater version and a more powerful engine with greater thrust.

"Its complete design will be frozen by the end of the 18-month PDC. Six to seven of its prototypes should be flying by 2017. After that, there will be 2,500 hours of flight-testing over 25 months before the series production begins in 2019,'' he said.

HQ-9 is a modern mobile strategic SAM system roughly analogous to the Russian-made S-300PMU (SA-10B GRUMBLE). The HQ-9 has a range of 100 kilometers, an increase over the S-300PMU's 90 kilometer maximum range but less than that of the S-300PMU-1's 150 kilometers.

The containerized missiles are carried in groups of four on the back of wheeled TELs very similar in design to that of the S-300P's 5P85. Target prosecution is handled by the HT-233 phased-array radar system, mounted on a wheeled chassis in a configuration very similar to that employed by the S-300PMU, which mounts the 30N6 (FLAP LID) engagement radar on a MAZ-7910 chassis. The HT-233 radar is likely capable of engaging multiple targets thanks to its phased-array construction.

The similarities between the S-300PMU components and the HQ-9 components may be the result of a limited reverse-engineering effort. China had no prior experience in developing a modern, high-performance strategic SAM system, and it is likely that the S-300P was examined as either a possible starting point or at the very least a general roadmap for component design.

Espionage efforts may have aided the development effort as well, as the HT-233's radar array bears some similarities to the MIM-104 PATRIOT's AN/MPQ-53 phased-array radar. Were the HQ-9 to be an amalgamation of S-300PMU and PATRIOT technology, it would have to be regarded as a very formidable weapon system, although there is no reason to doubt the system's effectiveness were this not to be the case.The HQ-9's 100 kilometer range and multiple target engagement capability means that fewer SAM sites are now required to defend a given portion of airspace.

Interrogations with the arrested Indian spy have shed some light on covert Indian spy networks inside Pakistan. New information includes leads on Indian intelligence priorities in the region, which are focused on putting pressure on Pakistan and ISI through fake terror acts that could also destroy peace talks between India and Pakistan.

akistani security officials have foiled an attempt by the Indian intelligence to enact a fake terror act on the ceasefire line in Kashmir to implicate Pakistan in terrorism.

The plan was unearthed when a suspect working for the Indian intelligence was apprehended in Sialkot border area while attempting to cross over to India through the border security fence; an impregnable barbed wire obstacle whose entrance points are locked and controlled by the Indian Border Security Force. The suspect has confessed to working as an Indian spy who was tasked to recruit agents from Pakistan to work for Indian intelligence.More evidence of how India is deeply involved in staging fake terror incidents to implicate Pakistan. A probe into recent bombings in India has proven it. In this case, an Indian spy tried to cross into the Indian side.

The suspect whose name has been withheld for security reasons disclosed that his Indian handlers, Mr. Sharma and Mr. Amjad, had tasked him to recruit a Pakistani national by offering a large monetary reward, preferably carrying a weapon and send him across the border through the border barbed wire fence after informing the BSF troops. Mr. Sharma had assured him that all the details of border crossing would be finalized by him and duly taken care off at his end.

The suspect also disclosed that the Indian Intelligence had planned a fake encounter to kill the border crosser and exploit the episode as proof of terrorists launched by ISI crossing over from Pakistan to commit acts of terrorism in India. He also said that he had held a few meetings with his Indian handlers in Islamabad as well.This arrest has pulled the lid off Indian spying networks in Pakistan and the existence of Indian agents or Pakistanis recruited by Indians.

Interrogations with the Indian spy and other evidence reveal the current priority of Indian spies in the region. They are focused on organizing terror acts that can be easily blamed on Pakistan and ISI. Indian spies want to see terror acts that resound in the media and could help avert any attempt to restore talks between Pakistan and India over Kashmir. With the possibility of a secretary level interaction emerging on the sidelines of a SAARC meeting in Thimpu Bhutan in the first week of February, India should be interested in a few fake terror acts that could show the flow of terrorists from Pakistan that would strengthen its position to format any future discussions centered on terrorism rather than finding ways to tackle the core issue of Kashmir.

The episode also points to the involvement of Indian undercover agents stationed in its Islamabad embassy, engaging in espionage activities in grave violation of their diplomatic status.

Britain is on a collision course with the European Union over the sale of arms to China. Since the Beijing government crackdown on protestors in Tiananmen Square in 1989, EU member states have been banned from selling goods that could be used by the Chinese military.

China’s new J-20 stealth fighter roars along the runway and takes to the skies, the maiden test-flight of a plane designed to rival the United States’ radar-eluding aircraft.

Images of the flight, leaked on the Internet and subsequently confirmed as genuine by the Beijing government, have focused attention on China’s military modernization.

The European Union banned the sale of military technology to China following the crackdown on dissidents in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1989.

But Alexander Neill of analyst group the Royal United Services Institute says China’s growing financial influence in Europe is starting to tell.

"EU member states certainly feel pressured by China given the economic contagion, which seems to be spreading through the EU at the moment,” Neill said. “Many national leaders, I am sure, will think twice about how they engage the Chinese on investment, which is essentially bailing them out of elements of their economic doldrums."

Beijing has just signed a series of multi-billion-dollar deals with European companies. China says it is also prepared to buy up to $7.9 billion of Spanish government debt at a time of heightened fears over the future of the euro currency.

Many EU leaders, including the bloc’s foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton, have suggested it is time the arms export ban to China was revised.

Britain, while welcoming its own slice of Chinese investment, is at odds with EU countries that want to repeal the embargo."The U.K.’s position remains exactly as it has been over the last few years, which is now is not the right time to lift the ban," Neill stated.

Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Washington earlier this month and sought to calm fears over China’s investment in its military. He says China does not engage in arms races or pose a military threat to any country and will never seek hegemony or pursue an expansionist policy.

Despite military spending estimated at $78 billion in 2010, Alexander Neill says China’s armed forces still lag behind. "But there are areas of concern where China has managed to play catch-up with the United States,” he said. “Particularly in its high-tech and asymmetric capabilities."

China’s J-20 stealth fighter is an example of such high-tech advances.

A former B-2 stealth bomber engineer convicted of selling military secrets to China is due to be sentenced in federal court on Monday.

Noshir Gowadia, 66, faces up to life in prison for his conviction on 14 counts, including conspiracy, communicating national defence information to aid a foreign nation, and violating the arms export control act.

Chief U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway is due to issue her sentence after listening to arguments from the prosecution and defence. Gowadia, who has been in custody without bail since his 2005 arrest, is also expected to have an opportunity to make a statement.

A federal jury in August found Gowadia guilty after deliberating for six days. They had heard 39 days of evidence over nearly four months. The jury acquitted him on three counts.

Prosecutors said Gowadia helped China design a stealth cruise missile to get money to pay the $15,000-a-month mortgage on his multimillion dollar home overlooking the ocean in Haiku on Maui. They said he pocketed at least $110,000 from the sale of military secrets.

They said Gowadia showed his Chinese contacts how his stealth cruise missile design would be effective against U.S. air-to-air missiles.

Gowadia's defence attorneys said it's true the engineer gave China the design for a stealth cruise missile exhaust nozzle but he based his work on unclassified, publicly available information. Gowadia's son has said his father plans to appeal.

The sentencing comes just weeks after China conducted a flight test of its new J-20 stealth fighter during a visit to Beijing by U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates.

The Jan. 11 flight was held at an airfield in Chengdu, where prosecutors say Gowadia delivered an oral presentation on classified stealth technology in 2003.

The city is home to the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute and is a centre for Chinese fighter aircraft and cruise missile reseach and development.

Gowadia helped design the propulsion system for the B-2 bomber when he worked at Northrop Corp., now known as Northrop Grumman Corp., between 1968 and 1986.

Born in India, he moved to the U.S. for postgraduate work in the 1960s and became a U.S. citizen about a decade later. He retired from Northrop for health reasons in 1986, two years before the B-2 made its public debut.

Gowadia moved to Maui in 1999 from the U.S. mainland where he had been doing consulting work after retiring from Northrop.

A Chinese stealth fighter jet that could pose a significant threat to American air superiority may borrow from US technology, it has been claimed.

Balkan military officials and other experts said China may have gleaned knowledge from a US F-117 Nighthawk that was shot down over Serbia in 1999.

"At the time, our intelligence reports told of Chinese agents crisscrossing the region where the F-117 disintegrated, buying up parts of the plane from local farmers," said Admiral Davor Domazet-Loso, Croatia's military chief of staff during the Kosovo war. "We believe the Chinese used those materials to gain an insight into secret stealth technologies ... and to reverse-engineer them."

The Nighthawk was downed by a Serbian anti-aircraft missile during a bombing raid on 27 March 1999. It was the first time one of the fighters had been hit, and the Pentagon blamed clever tactics and sheer luck. The pilot ejected and was rescued.

A senior Serbian military official confirmed that pieces of the wreckage were removed by souvenir collectors, and that some ended up "in the hands of foreign military attaches". Efforts to get comment from China's defence ministry and the Pentagon were unsuccessful.

Parts of the F-117 wreckage, including its left wing, cockpit canopy, ejection seat, pilot's helmet and radio, are exhibited at Belgrade's aviation museum. Zoran Milicevic, deputy director of the museum, said: "I don't know what happened to the rest of the plane. A lot of delegations visited us in the past, including the Chinese, Russians and Americans ... but no one showed any interest in taking any part of the jet."

Zoran Kusovac, a Rome-based military consultant, said the regime of the former Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic routinely shared captured western equipment with its Chinese and Russian allies. "The destroyed F-117 topped that wish-list for both the Russians and Chinese," Kusovac said.

China's multi-role stealth fighter – known as the Chengdu J-20 – made its inaugural flight on 11 January, revealing dramatic progress in the country's efforts to develop cutting-edge military technologies. It is at least eight or nine years from entering service.

Bolivia, Wednesday, January 19, 2011: Bolivia is set to receive 6 Chinese-made combat aircraft to be used to fight drug trafficking, the head of the Bolivian Air Force said on Tuesday.

General Tito Gandarilla, the Air Force commander, told local journalists that the K-8 Karakorum jets are scheduled to be delivered in April, at a cost of US $ 58 million (S $ 74.5 million).

The aircraft, bought through a loan from China, will be the first of their kind for Bolivia, which currently has only training and freight aircraft.

Gen Gandarilla explained that the jets 'have a lifespan of 15 to 20 years' and have the ability to intercept illegal crafts that 'in Bolivian airspace without authorisation'. The aircraft will be used mainly around Cochabamba in central Bolivia, where there is heavy production of coca plants used to make cocaine.

The Bolivian government also plans to buy 10 Russian-built cargo helicopters for use by the police.

In 2008, President Evo Morales ordered the US Drug Enforcement Administration to leave after accusing it of having had a hand in political unrest and drug-trafficking in Bolivia. The US State Department has identified Bolivia as a major drug-transit or drug-producing country.

Even as India has announced its intent to have new generation diesel-electric submarines, Pakistan has gone ahead and signed a deal with long-standing ally China to produce submarines with the same technology that India wants.The Pakistan Navy and China’s Ship Building Corporation signed a deal that got the seal of finality during the visit of Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao to Pakistan last December. Indian security agencies in know of the matter have cautioned the government that this could tilt the balance in favour of the Pakistan Navy in the Arabian Sea.

India is looking to spend Rs 50,000 crore to acquire six new diesel-electric submarines that will be equipped with air-independent propulsion (AIP) technology to boost operational capabilities. Conventional diesel-electric submarines have to surface every couple of days for oxygen to recharge their batteries. A submarine using AIP technology can stay submerged for 12-15 days at a stretch, thus increasing its capacity to hunt down enemy warships without being detected. Nuclear powered submarines can stay underwater for even longer periods.Under the latest agreement, China will co-produce six AIP technology submarines with Pakistan. Currently, the neighbouring navy has only one submarine -- PNS Hamza. Pakistan is also looking at an AIP system produced by a French or German maker to fit on to the Chinese made hull of the vessel, said an official.

What is worrying for India is the known pace of Chinese construction. China could well provide three-four new generation AIP technology submarines to the neigbouring country within two years. The Chinese had supplied four frigates to the Pakistan Navy in 18 months flat! The two nations have also co-produced the single-engine J-17 fighter that was inducted into the Pakistan Air Force last summer.

For India, it could take upto five years to induct its first such submarine, as it will have to go through the process of trying out offers from various global bidders before ordering the vessels.

The Indian Navy has a bigger fleet in terms of number but it is dwindling and will be down to eight conventional diesel-electric vessels by 2015. By then, the first of the six under-construction Scorpene submarines will join the fleet followed by five more till 2018. The AIP technology vessels will follow later. Going by estimates, Pakistan would complete the induction of its fleet of AIP technology vessels by the time India starts off with its line of such submarines.

However, India will maintain its edge over Pakistan in case of nuclear-powered submarines. It hopes to induct the Akula-II Class attack submarine K-152 Nerpa on a 10-year lease from Russia in the next few weeks while the first indigenous nuclear submarine INS Arihant is expected to be inducted by early-2012.

Indian Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma has already declared that nuclear-powered submarine INS Arihant would be on ‘deterrent patrol’ to provide the ability of a retaliatory ‘second strike’ if the country faces a nuclear attack.

Brazil sold arms to Pakistan overlooking Indian concerns? A section of Brazilian media has carried reports about a Pakistan Air Force transport aircraft being loaded with missiles and bombs last month at Sao Jose dos Campos airport near Sao Paulo.

If these reports are true, the move will be received by surprise as just last year, Brazil had cancelled a contract to sell anti-radiation missiles - meant to destroy radars - to Pakistan. It was widely believed that the deal was cancelled keeping in mind the Indian concerns.

There is no official confirmation so far on the nature of cargo loaded on the C-130 transport aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force. One report claimed that it was short range air to air missile 1-A Piranha, whose improved version MAA-1B is still under development. Other claim has been that the cargo was unguided bombs based on the US MK Series.

The reports also claimed that the sale was kept a secret due to a confidentially clause in the contract.

But the ammunition mentioned in the reports is old. Piranha missiles were used in now retired Mirage III fighter jets of the Brazilian Air Force. PAF still flies a variant of Mirage III.

According to the report, the missiles were loaded in two C-130 aircraft of PAF and the exact value of the deal in terms of money was still not known.

As the veracity of these reports remains to be verified, some experts felt that the timing of such a move by Brazil was surprising as the Latin American country was keen to engage India in expanding defence cooperation.

Just three months ago, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was in Brazil where it was decided to enhance defence ties. The two sides had agreed to place defence attaches in each others country. Brazil has a strong aviation sector and there have been talks to explore joint ventures.

By not selling anti-radiation missiles to Pakistan, Brazil had sent a strong message to India and opened the way for striking new deals.

India and Brazil have common interests in the military sector as both have big armed forces.

The image above, captured in 2010, depicts an F-117A mockup. Normally, a mockup of the F-117A wouldn't be a very big deal, but this one is in the middle of Luoyang, China.

It is a full-scale mockup, with the wingspan matching the "real" F-117A at roughly 43 feet.

Why is there an F-117A mockup sitting inside of Luoyang? There could be a completely benign purpose, such as use in some sort of media. However, Luoyang is home to the Luoyang Electro-Optical Technology Development Center, who is responsible for developing the current air-to-air missiles fielded by the Chinese military.

A facility such as this would certainly be able to make use of an accurate model of a VLO aircraft for missile seeker evaluation, particularly in the case of seekers for active radar homing weapons like the current PL-12.

This may be a prototype of JH-8, a VTOL capable F-117A derivative using captured technology.

Turkey is seriously reconsidering the myriad agreements it has signed with the US, as well as its participation in an international consortium for the procurement of new generation fighter jets, due to rising costs and persisting problems originating from the American side.

Turkey is now seeking new ways to sidestep difficulties in the procurement of F-16 fighter planes, which it has been jointly producing with the US since 1987, due to the delayed delivery by the US authorities of some of the plane’s parts and accessories. There have been serious doubts as to whether Turkey’s plan to purchase 100 F-35 fighter planes would ever materialize, as the country is thinking about withdrawing from the consortium following the hike in costs that resulted from other countries leaving from the consortium.

With 240 F-16s, Turkey has the third largest fleet of these fighter jets after the US and Israel. Turkey chose the F-16 to use in its air force in the early 1980s, and Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAİ) was established soon after the decision. Between 1987 and 1995, TAİ assembled 152 planes in the first phase of the F-16 project. The second phase took place between 1995 and 1999, and 80 planes were assembled. Turkey received its first overseas order for F-16 planes in 1993 from the Egyptian air force and assembled 46 planes for them.

Recently TAI upgraded the first of 17 planes for Jordan’s air force within the context of a modernization program. Several Turkey-made planes have also been dispatched to Pakistan.

In total TAİ has assembled 278 F-16s since it first began operations in 1987. During production, 29 planes were produced with no mistakes and three of them were considered “perfect.” Considering that only nine F-16 planes are produced as perfect out of 4,000 fighter jets in the world, Turkey’s success is conspicuous.

Turkey suspended production of the F-16 in 2000, but these fighter jets still remain the backbone of the Turkish armed forces.

Strained ties delayed delivery of plane accessories

As the agreement between the US and Turkey expired in 2000, Turkey has continued to work with Israel in modernizing the F-16s. Turkey has attempted to compensate for several mistakes that occurred while working with the US through several deals with Israel. The fundamental problem was that the US did not hand the F-16s directly to the Turkish Air Forces and it required TAİ-made planes be tested in the US before the eventual delivery to the Turkish Air Forces.

The US had also refused to provide source codes for the software of F-16s to Turkey since the inception of the joint production. Tensions in the relations between the US and Turkey have recently spawned a series of crises in this particular sphere, a possibility which Turkey has overlooked for years.

A senior official at the Turkish Undersecretariat for the Defense Industry (SSM) confided in Today’s Zaman that the US is not willing to provide vital parts of the F-16 planes to Turkey in contrast to agreements the two countries have signed in the past few years.

The same senior official said the US delayed the fulfillment its duties specified in the agreements it signed with Turkey between 1987 and 1995 and that this has caused serious problems in modernization of F-16s.

The official lamented that Turkey is experiencing very serious problems in obtaining parts and accessories for the planes as ties with Israel collapsed, and that he finds it noteworthy to stress that the US administration has made congressional approval a precondition of selling any sort of weaponry and military equipment.

Last October the US expressed concerns that Turkey was using US-made F-16s in the Turkey-China aerial exercises, which took place in the Central Anatolian town of Konya, but Turkey reassured the US administration that no US-made jets were used in the joint drill.

Turkey decided to modernize 165 F-16 planes on Dec. 11, 2009 and several Israeli firms were competing to win the tender, along with Turkey’s TUSAŞ and HAVELSAN. All projects between Turkey and Israel in the areas of military training and cooperation were frozen in mid-June after the lethal May 31 Israeli raid on the Mavi Marmara, which was carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, leaving left nine civilians dead. The two countries were set to realize a $757 million plane and tank modernization project but this project was also shelved. The Turkish government decided to give the modernization tender to Turkish firms after Turkish-Israeli ties became strained.

A $240 million modernization project was given to Turkish companies, but 30 percent of the plane’s parts will be provided by the US military behemoth Lockheed Martin.

Turkey is also considering its participation in the world’s largest military consortium that is planning to produce 3,000 F-35 fighter jets. Turkey is the ninth country to take part in the production process of the F-35 warplane project. The other countries are the US, the UK, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, Denmark, Canada and Norway. Turkey is expected to purchase 100 F-35 jets in the next 15 to 20 years. Rising costs pushed several countries to withdraw from the $280 billion project, and the same senior official said Turkey might also consider withdrawing.

The Defense Industry Executive Committee (SSİK), under the aegis of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, will make its final decision in April. The SSİK is seeking ways to jointly produce some parts of F-35 fighter planes with the American General Electric Co. and the Rolls-Royce Group in Turkey.

Turkey is also deliberating the exchange of its F-16s for F-35s within a reasonable time period. Turkey is expected to pay nearly $11 billion for 100 F-35 fighter jets. Citing rising costs in production, the consortium is asking Turkey for an additional $4 billion for the F-35s, but Turkey is reluctant to pay this amount. As some countries have withdrawn from the project, Turkey will reportedly have to pay up to $25 billion for the project.Turkey is planning joint warplane production with Gulf countries

Turkey has made a radical shift recently, deciding to produce its first fleet of national fighter jets following crises in F-16 and F-35 projects with the US and Israel.

Turkish authorities decided during a Defense Industry Executive Committee (SSİK) meeting last December to begin production on the first Turkish fighter jets in 2020 in order to meet the needs of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK). TUSAŞ Engine Industries Inc. (TEİ) and TAİ will be the leading companies that will undertake production of these fighter jets, planning to design and produce plane engines by 2015.

Israel claimed that Turkey will fail to produce these jets as no country in the world would dare to build its own planes without participating in a consortium due to the high costs.

Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) Adana deputy Kürşat Atılgan told Today’s Zaman that no country could produce a fighter jet by itself and for lucrative production, there needs to be at least 400 jets produced. Considering this fact, Turkey had been secretly trying to build a consortium with neighboring and friendly countries. In last month’s SSİK meeting, Gönül also talked about the possibility of joint production of fighter jets with South Korean companies. This issue was raised during Erdoğan’s recent visit to Gulf countries. Turkey thinks it will be easier to produce its own fighter jets with five countries involved in the region.

MBDA is bringing in missile power at the Aero India 2011. Proposed in the frame of Mirage 2000 upgrade program, MICA air-to-air missile will also be displayed on MBDA stall. MICA is the only missile in the world featuring two interoperable seekers (active radar and imaging infrared) to cover the spectrum from close- in dogfight to long beyond visual range. It is sometimes referred to as the silent interceptor as it is extremely hard to defend against. For the Indian Air Force MMRCA missile solutions, MBDA is displaying Meteor, Dual Mode Brimstone, Taurus KEPD 350 and SCALP/Storm Shadow. MBDA is offering them for the three European aircraft options lined up for the IAF ’s MMRCA competition, Rafale, Eurofighter Typhoon and Gripen.

MBDA says that Meteor, if procured, the IAF will benefit from a performance that will ensure launch aircraft survivability while minimising missile usage and, therefore, whole life cost. The Dual Mode Brimstone is MBDA ’s most recent developments and a key UK RAF weapon currently being deployed operationally in theatre in conditions not dissimilar to those that the IAF would most likely have to operate in. DMB is the only weapon currently available that can engage fast moving land and sea targets with high precision. Capable of engaging a wide variety of target types and operating safely and effectively in the complex littoral area, DMB offers a major operational advantage in being able to deal with the swarming FIAC (Fast Inshore Attack Craft) threats. The Eurofighter Typhoon equipped with DMB has a distinct advantage over helicopters as it can rapidly confront a threat which could be engaged asymmetrically optimising the effectiveness. Significantly, DMB has been used with the Litening pod designator which is already in service with the IAF. As for Deep Strike operations, MBDA has two cruise missiles to offer for the MMRCA programme. Taurus KEPD 350 for the Eurofighter Typhoon and Gripen and SCALP/Storm Shadow for the Rafale. Both weapon systems are in service and have proven their unerring and unmatched ability to fulfil and indeed exceed the requirements stipulated by the IAF in terms of range, target effect and CEP (Circular Error Probable). For ALH DHRUV and LCH helicopters, MBDA is offering PARS 3. This fire and forget system developed for Germany ’s Tiger helicopter is capable of targeting and defeating a wide range of mobile and stationary ground targets from latest generation armour-protected vehicles to bunkers with pinpoint accuracy.

For pilot safety, the missiles, once launched, navigate autonomously to their respective targets without requiring further input from the gunner thereby allowing the helicopter to quit its position should there be a danger. Pars 3 on the Tiger features a four-missile launcher. However, India prefers a twin variant and in this respect MBDA has been sourcing an Indian defence industry partner to develop this alternative design. India has asked for trials of the system. With these trials due soon, Aero India will be an important shop window for this system. For MRH HELICOPTER, MBDA is offering MARTE ER. Marte ER has already been integrated and qualified on the medium- range NH90 helicopter. Marte ER adds a turbo-engine motor that takes the missile’s range out to over 100km. With India actively looking for a MRH (medium range helicopter) capabilities, Marte ER should bea major talking point during the show.

MBDA is also offering ASRAAM for JAGUAR Upgrade. The Jaguars of the IAF are undergoing upgrades to extend their life through to the end of the decade. An important part of this upgrade will depend on the choice of self-protection air-to-air missiles to replace the currently deployed R550 Magic. There is space for only one such weapon on the Jaguar’s overwing station and MBDA ’s ASRAAM (already in service with the UK and Australian air forces) would provide an optimum solution given its ability to provide short to medium range protection passively. Overwing pylons call for quick missile separation to avoid contact with the aircraft ’s wing. ASRAAM is the fastest, lowest drag SRAAM weapon on the market. This speed not only provides safe separation, it also guarantees “first shot first kill ” to avoid getting involved in a dogfight. As the Jaguar is a low-flying aircraft, a threat could well come from a higher altitude. ASRAAM again offers a major advantage here in its unmatched “snap-up” capability, the missile’s ability to rapidly divert upwards once fired. MBDA will also be promoting its Fire Shadow loitering munitions, the family of Exocetanti-ship weapons as well as Europe’s most significant anti- air defence missile development, namely Aster. Similarly the Milan anti-armour weapon (produced by BDL) willbe on display as evidence of over 30 years of industrial partnership between MBDA and India.

Within a year of the government approving a project for an upgraded indigenous main battle tank (MBT), India's defence research agency has readied a Mark II version that will undergo summer and winter trials this year.

The defence ministry had last May given its nod to the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to develop the Arjun MkII MBT which would have enhanced features over the first lot of 124 tanks that have been delivered to the army over the last two years.

'The Arjun MkII tanks will go for summer trials this year and later for winter trials at the end of 2011,' a defence ministry official said here Monday.

The army is already operating two regiments of Arjun tanks in the western sector and has placed an order for an additional 124 - two regiments - of the 58-tonne tanks from the Avadi-based manufacturer, Heavy Vehicles Factory.

The army gained confidence in operating the Arjun tanks, despite the initial hesitation, after the first two regiments were pitted against the Russian-built T-90 MBTs early last year in comparative trials in the desert terrain.

The Arjuns, army officers said, had outsmarted the T-90s in all the parameters set for the trials and had prompted the army top brass to admit that the tank was one of the best they had operated.

The Arjun MkII will have about a dozen changes from the first lot, being armed with missile firing capability through a laser homing device.

Though the missile system had been tested on the MkI version of the tank about five years ago, it did not form part of the final design of the initial 124 delivered to the army, and nor will it be mounted on the second lot of 124, ministry officials said.

The system, they said, would have a range of about eight kms, within which it could destroy enemy tanks after homing on to the target using a laser.

Other modifications include better explosive-reactive armour for the tank to protect it from enemy missiles and rockets, improving the sighting facility to provide it a wider view of the battlefield, including night vision capability, and a better communication system.

According to the Russian "Airport" website reported January 12, China’s fifth generation fighter J-20 which completed successfully test flight is expected to become a powerful competitor of the U.S. F-22 and Russian T-50 . Some analysts believe that the smooth progress of this test show that China’s military aviation industry has made great breakthroughs in recent years, the U.S. air superiority in the region will be seriously challenged.

In the January 11 test flight carried out, J-20 for about 15 minutes of flight.

Western media have pointed out that recently appeared in Chinese media reports on J-20 might have been the consent of the Chinese military leadership.

Analysts believe that, J-20′s successful flight test showed that the modernization of China in terms of weapons far beyond the achievements of previous estimates of foreign military experts.

It is predicted that, J-20 will be served in the 2017-2019 years, and became the F-22 (today the only fifth generation fighter aircraft in service) and the Russian T-50 (it is expected to be put into production in 2015) competitors.

Published photos from the current point of view, J-20 is greater than the size of F-22 and T-50, which means it may have a longer range and greater payload. However, the performance of the aircraft airborne equipment is still a mystery.

Of course, China’s aviation industry in recent years great progress thanks in large part to advanced technology from abroad. For a long time, the engine has been plagued the development of China’s aviation industry one of the major bottlenecks. Some analysts believe that China has not yet developed to fully meet the needs of the new J-20 engine.

However, military experts pointed out that China may use existing engines for the J-20 flight testing. The experts explained that the test flight time may not be too long, the height and speed requirements are also lower than the levels after actual use.

According to the Associated Press news release, China has produced the two J-20 prototype: a Russian-made engine installed, the other one, the installation of Chinese-made engine. It should be stressed that, for the first flight of it is that Chinese-made aircraft engines installed J-20.

As for the J-20′s stealth capabilities, some experts pointed out that the performance of the machine although weaker than the U.S. F-22, but it is also quite good, the front section of the radar reflectivity of about 0.05 square meter.

J-20 test flight in the United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates visited Beijing for the second day. British analysts have pointed out that the move may be to show Beijing its military to prepare to make their research programs become more transparent.

Of course, China also released a new generation of fighter flight out of a signal – even though the United States and its allies have expressed unease, China will continue to promote the country’s military modernization process.

Russia and India should speed up work on their joint fifth-generation fighter plane to meet the challenge from the Chinese rival unveiled earlier this week, said a leading military expert.

“The Chinese prototype of a fifth-generation aircraft, J-20, appears to be a long-range strike aircraft and as such it will pose a potential threat to India,” said analyst Konstantin Makienko of the Moscow-based Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST).

China's stealth fighter made its first 15-minute flight on Tuesday over an airfield in the south-western city of Chengdu. Mr. Makienko called the test flight an “unquestionable success” for the Chinese defence industry.“China has emerged as the third nation developing the fifth-generation fighter plane after the U.S. and Russia,” he told The Hindu.The Russian expert said India and Russia should intensify efforts to build their advanced fighter plane if they are not to lose the race to China.“The J-20 fighter will be a direct rival of the Russian-Indian fifth-generation aircraft. The Chinese plane will be ready by 2020, so time will be a crucial factor.”

The Russian prototype, T-50, made its first flight a year ago. India joined the project only last month when the two sides signed a contract for the preliminary design of the fifth-generation fighter aircraft to be called Perspective Multi-role Fighter (PMF).

India will contribute about 30 per cent of the plane's total design by providing composite material components, some avionics, electronic warfare systems and cockpit displays. Indian designers will also be responsible for re-modelling Russia's single-seat fighter into a two-seater version for the IAF.

The PMF planes are expected to start rolling out around 2017, but delays cannot be ruled out, judging by past experience.The fifth-generation fighter will be the first Indo-Russian aviation project that will be marketed in third countries.

The Russian Center for Analysis of International Weapons Trade estimates the global market for the PMF at over 400 planes.“In order to retain its competitive edge the Russian-Indian fifth-generation fighter should enter global markets before the Chinese plane and cap its price at $80-100 million per aircraft,” the Russian expert said.To rival China's new stealth jet

China confirmed the first test flight of its highly controversial stealth fighter, ending speculation that the secretive aircraft had taken to the air.Chinese President Hu Jintao told U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates

about the flight of the prototype J-20 shortly before Gates left Beijing after a three-day visit to China intended to improve military communications between the two countries.Gates, who is also visiting Japan and South Korea while in the region, said the discussion with Hu about the J-20 flight that took place this week was short."I asked President Hu about it directly and he said that the test had absolutely nothing to do with my visit and had been a pre-planned test. And that's where we left it."

The 15-minute flight took place in Chengdu, in southwest China.Hu, who is chairman of the Central Military Commission, said the flight hadn't been timed to coincide with Gates's visit.The 11-member commission issues directives to the army including senior appointments, troop deployment and arms spending. The majority of members are senior generals but several senior Communist party members are on the commission, a move said to ensure that the military remains loyal in its actions toward the government.Defense and aviation analysts have been questioning images and video clips of the stealth fighter seen on Chinese Web sites since last month, showing what looks like a J-20 standing on a runway apron and then taking off.Many of the shots of the Chengdu J-20 appear taken by people standing a long way from the runway, possibly outside the airport perimeter.

The aircraft was officially announced in late 2002 as being under development through a joint design and development project by the Chengdu Aircraft and Shenyang Aircraft companies.But Chinese political leaders and aviation sector professionals have been guarded about details, specifications and development progress of the aircraft that is similar in concept to Lockheed Martin's F-22 Raptor stealth fighter.However, experts have gleaned much information over the years.The latest shots show an elongated airframe with forward canards, a main delta wing, outward canted fins, two small ventral fins, two under-wing diverterless supersonic intakes and conventional jet nozzles.

It is believed to be larger than the F-22 -- the only truly stealth plane operational -- or Russia's prototype stealth fighter, the Sukhoi T-50, which had its first test flight in January 2010 and is expected in service sometime after 2015.It isn't clear what engine the J-20 is using. There was some speculation that the Russians may have supplied the 32,000-pound thrust 117-S engine because the Chinese-made WS-10A isn't ready.The 117-S is an upgrade of the Saturn AL-31 turbofan engine developed by Lyulka, now NPO Saturn, of Russia. It was originally made for the Sukhoi Su-27 fighter.It also remains open whether the plane uses plasma stealth technology whereby it emits an ionized gas that surrounds the aircraft, making it harder to detect by radar systems.